by: the Common Constitutionalist

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If one were to look in an Encyclopedia (like Google for old folks) for the modern-day definition or explanation of free-market capitalism – beside the detailed explanation, might be the logos of the ride sharing services Uber and Lyft.

These services are the virtually unregulated, non-unionized, and much less expensive version of the taxi. This is the real free-market at work and it’s proving to work quite well without government and/or thuggish Union oversight.

Practically anyone can become a driver for one of these services. One must be at least 21 years of age, have a 4-door sedan or equivalent, have a valid driver’s license and insurance, a minimum of three years driving experience and pass a motor vehicle and criminal background check. Do that and you have yourself a part or full time job.

Uber is one of those “only in America” ideas that can only spawn in a free-market. In less than seven short years the company went from triumphantly tweeting that it had made its first $5 on March 27, 2010, less than four months after it began, to having a worth of almost $70 billion worldwide. read more